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The same US oil companies present in Central Asia, which are vying for control over the oil wealth of the former Soviet Union are also present in the Andean region of South America.  Under the disguise of the "War on Drugs" or the "War on Terrorism", US foreign policy has led to the militarisation of these two regions, with a view to protecting oil pipelines as well as the powerful interests underlying the multibillion dollar drug trade. In Colombia, many of the paramilitary groups "responsible for hundreds of murders and thousands of disappearances" are the direct result of US military assistance under Plan Colombia.

 

US Oil Interests in Colombia

 

The National Mobilization on Colombia ,   February 2002

Centre for Research on Globalisation (CRG),  globalresearch.ca,     February 2002

 

"We never mentioned the words coca or narco-trafficker in our training� The objective continues to be oil." (Stan Goff, former US Special Forces Intelligence Sergeant, on his work in Colombia) 

The United States is deeply involved in the Colombian civil war, aiding the government with over $1 billion, most of which is military support. Supposedly part of the "War on Drugs," this aid has been widely challenged for not effectively addressing real needs in the fight against drug use and addiction. An examination of campaign contributions and lobbying efforts helps to shed light on ulterior motives for US involvement. Weapons manufacturers and security contractors have vested interest in US involvement. And in Colombia, international oil industry interests appear to have deeply influenced US foreign policy.

American Interest in Colombian Oil 

The United States imports more oil from Colombia and its neighbors, Venezuela and Ecuador, than from all of the Persian Gulf. As President Bush's energy agenda prioritizes energy independence from the turbulent Middle East and the left-leaning President Chavez of Venezuela, attentions turn to oil-rich Colombia. Many parts of the country remain unexplored, making secure access to Colombian oil reserves a high priority.

American Firms and the Colombian Oil Industry 

American corporations are a key part of the Colombian petroleum landscape, as only one oil company is Colombian-owned. The rest are multinational or American-owned; the biggest is BP Amoco. Others include Shell and ExxonMobil.

Threats to Oil's Dominance 

Opposition groups threaten the dominance of foreign oil corporations in Colombia. Colombian indigenous people are vocally calling for protection of their local environment, and are slowing exploration and extraction with protests. Increasingly, guerrilla groups bomb pipelines as a method of war, and as a way to extract "taxes" for each barrel of oil they do allow to pass.

Oil Firms Push for War on Drugs 

Threats to profits are anathema to any corporate interest. In order to protect their investments in wells, pipelines, local personnel, and related industrial projects, oil corporations have lobbied hard for US military assistance to Colombia.

Texas-based Enron Corp, Occidental Petroleum and BP Amoco made large contributions donations to US political candidates and parties, and have pushed hard for increased US military assistance to Colombia.

Defending the Industry 

The Colombian army and right wing paramilitaries (illegal armed groups with links to the Colombian army) protect and profit from foreign oil interests in Colombia. Despite a deteriorating human rights situation that the military claims it is too poor to address, the Colombian army spends nearly one quarter of its resources on defending oil installations. And credible reports document security contracts between oil companies and paramilitary groups. Those who are "protecting US interests" in the region are doing so ruthlessly. Paramilitaries target local indigenous activists, and the labor leaders working in the oil industry have been among the most violently repressed in the world. Illegal armed groups are responsible for hundreds of murders and thousands of disappearances, many of which are directly linked to the protest of oil exploration and extraction activities.

Oil and the Environment 

Oil exploration and extraction is a highly toxic industrial activity. In Colombia, pipelines and access roads cut deeply into ecologically sensitive areas, including the Amazon rainforest. War-related pipeline bombings-which happen about 5 times a week in Colombia-dump thousands of gallons of crude oil onto the ground, and into the local watershed and the ecosystem.


Copyright The National Mobilization on Colombia , 2002. Reprinted for fair use only


The URL of this article is:
http://globalresearch.ca/articles/NMC202A.html